The Ides of March, the Assassination That Changed Rome

On the morning of March 15, 44 BC, Julius Caesar was the most powerful man Rome had ever seen. He had conquered Gaul, defeated his rivals in a brutal civil war, and just a month earlier been named dictator for life. Within hours, he would be dead, killed by senators he had trusted and even pardoned.

Caesar’s rise had unsettled many Romans. For centuries, the Republic had been built on a fear of kings, and Caesar’s growing honors looked suspiciously like monarchy.

He appeared in a purple robe, his statues stood among those of the gods, and his face appeared on coins, which had never been done for a living Roman. Around sixty senators joined a conspiracy against him. Its leaders included Gaius Cassius and Marcus Junius Brutus, a man Caesar treated almost like a son.

The warnings were everywhere. According to ancient writers, a seer named Spurinna cautioned Caesar to beware the Ides of March, the fifteenth of the month. His wife, Calpurnia, reportedly had a nightmare and begged him to stay home. Caesar nearly listened, but conspirator Decimus Brutus persuaded him that skipping the Senate meeting would look like weakness.